We learnt at the restaurant yesterday (through leaflets, not conversation!) of a château in Chambord that was meant to be worth a visit, so this morning we set off in that direction as it was only 10 kilometers away. Worth a visit it was, though we didnt pay to look around the inside. The outside of the castle and its grounds were spectacular enough.
From here we dropped down to the next village and grabbed breakfast from the Boulangerie. I can confirm without hesitation that the stereotype of the French and their bagguetes is completely true. As we sat outside eating our criossants, a steady stream of locals went into the shop and each came out a minute later with a baguette in one hand. It is a life that I have to say looks pretty appealing. Perhaps i should start looking for software houses in France so I can move over here when I finish at university. And cyclists seems to be pretty well catered for in terms of facilities such as dedicated cycle paths.
On one such path we had a memorable moment that put a big grin on my face which stayed there for a long time after. As we were cycling along the Loire, a group of school children were cycling in the opposite direction. As we passed, almost each and every child gave us a big wave and said "Bonjour, bonjour"! Very cute :)
As we approached 40 miles today we said we'd pull to the side to have a rest. As luck would have it, this just happened to be where a roadside café was situated. It wasn't so lucky when we ordered two glasses of coke, though. It was poured from a standard two litre bottle and we were charged €4.80! Scandalous. From now on we shall be asking the price before ordering.
The cycling has been a little monotonous today, though because it has been flat we have made good time and arrived at our campsite earlier than usual. There is a swimming pool around the corner and we thought we'd give it a go before it closed. Imagine our disappointment when we were told we were not allowed to wear swimming trunks, and that budgie smugglers were mandatory! I was very tempted indeed to go fetch my flourescent green mankini (and I do have it with me!), but I think there's a time and a place for that beast.
An earlier visit to Lidl means we have some provisions for dinner tonight, so we'll be cooking food on the stove for a change. Tomorrow we'll be making our way towards Samur. This is where my grandad cycled when he came to France in the 90's on tour for a week and he portrayed it as being very beautiful indeed. Okay, essay written. Time to go relax for a bit. À bientôt
No comments:
Post a Comment